The true Social Value of the third sector

Since the introduction of the Social Value Act the measurement and demonstration of value has been much debated. At the heart of that debate is a belief that the worth of an activity or service should be measured not just on financial grounds, but on the wider benefits it brings to society.

There is no authoritative list of what these benefits may be – the Act is deliberately flexible because social value is best approached by considering each local context and needs. For example, in one area youth unemployment might be a serious concern, whilst in another health inequalities might be more pressing.

However putting it into practice is another matter. What factors should be considered when we decide what social value is? How should they be measured? And how do we balance one set of social benefits, such as jobs for local people, against another, such as savings to the public purse. Many third sector organisations create social value as part of ‘business as usual’ but not all of us are capturing or publishing the great impact we are having.

Here at 3SC we want to shout about the great work you are doing and are looking to build a library of case studies, highlighting the true social value our partners and supply chain are creating. These will be used as part of our on-going publicity and within our business development activity to highlight why using the third sector to public deliver services gives commissioners a far greater impact that simply the deliverables required within a contract.

We are keen to hear how your organisations currently define and measure social value. Contact Heidi Stewart, Business Development Director Heidi.stewart@3SC.org

Subscribe to 3SC Newsletter

Testimonials

"Using the web-based portal that 3SC has built to enable the delivery of the Access to Work programme has meant we, at AbilityNet, can work with a greater efficiency than ever before in delivering this kind of support. The fact that the system is bespoke and cloud-based means all the boxes are ticked around security measures, which for us is an immense advantage.
"

Dennis Dearden - Director of Sales and Marketing, AbilityNet

"3SC are extremely efficient in dealing with any queries or questions, and are also a friendly team to work with’
"

Holly Rushton - Administration Team Leader, AbilityNet

"3SC have been excellent partners. They have been supportive and prepared to fight our corner. They are focused on quality performance and have helped us deliver good results. Their values are our values.
"

Trevor Smith – Chief Executive Officer, Hull CVS

"3SC are a great pleasure to work with. The entire team consists of staff who are efficient and focussed, team players who will go the extra mile to achieve the mission and vision of the organisation.
"

Caroline Griffiths – Managing Director, Bradfield Group

"RNIB Scotland are delighted to be working in partnership with 3SC to enable blind and partially sighted people to move into and sustain meaningful employment through referrals to the DWP "Specialist Employment Support "(SES) programme. We have developed a good and open working relationship and we are exploring ways to develop and enhance our working partnership further.
"

Nigel Townley - Employment Team Leader RNIB

Latest News

Following on from our successful delivery of the previous iteration of Access to Work, 3SC currently work with RBLI on the newest version.
We asked one of our assessors, Rita, to talk a little about the challenges some of our customers living with Diabetes face.

3SC were introduced to Trinity Winchester in 2016 at the ‘Women in the Criminal Justice System conference’ and following this the charity expressed an interest in working with 3SC and the Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC). 3SC invited Trinity to attend a Grant and Innovation Workshop in July 2016. Following this the CRC worked with Trinity to develop their proposed idea and 3SC completed the Due Diligence.